that you vowed never to let your children go through, but as soon as they get sick you conjure the same home remedies that your parents swore could heal you.

Home remedies abound at home and online, but not all are true. Some could be a danger to your health. Here are some home remedies that you may have believed to work but are false.

The spit and wipe

The instinctive thing that many people think they can do when their child injures themselves in a way that results from them having a cut or scrapping their skin is to spit and wipe the area or blow on the wound to ease their pain. However, this could make matters worse.

Blowing or introducing saliva into the wound is dangerous as our saliva is laced with bacteria that can contaminate the wound, leading to infection. It's better to use water to cleanse the wound. Consult your doctor if the wound is deep.

A clove a day to keep the pain away

Being woken by a throbbing tooth in the middle of the night or while snacking on your favourite meal is something that can send someone running to the dentist or frantically looking in drawers for a clove. Taking this small woody piece of goodness between your teeth can soothe the pain, but for those opting to use the oil version of this could be faced with trouble.

Having a small amount of cloves is not known to harm most people but using clove oil in the mouth or on the gums can sometimes cause damage to these areas. Furthermore, parents are advised not to give children clove oil orally as it could cause a health hazard to them such as seizures, liver damage, and fluid imbalances.

Cranberry juice to soothe urinary tract infections

Urinary tract infections, which are also known as UTI's, are a discomforting infection to have.  If you experience symptoms such as:

A burning feeling when you urinate

Feeling the need to urinate constantly despite a small trickle coming out

Pain in your lower back

Change in colour in your urine such as it being cloudy, dark or blood in your urine

This could mean you have a urinary tract infection. While cranberry juice has been found to have a compound that prevents common bacteria like E. coli and Staph from attaching to the tissue cells, it doesn't have an adequate amount of active ingredients to stop bacteria from sticking to the urinary tract.  It may taste sweet, and when taken in the right amounts, could help improve your health. However, it is better to consult with a doctor to prevent the situation from becoming worse.

You may have a few home remedies that you may have tried out only to find that they were false. One thing to remember before trying out a home remedy is to consult with your doctor if you are planning to use it for a serious health issue that extends beyond mild aches and pains